World War I, though horrendous, brought a silver lining: young men who had become physically fit during military service now had unprecedented interest levels in exercise and sports.

Maybe a World War III would solve America’s current obesity crisis?

Athletic activity during the coming season should set a new mark in American sports. Army life has aroused a new interest for out-of-door games. Youths whose diversion in the past has been nothing more vigorous than billiards have learned in military service to exercise, and they like it. After that strenuous training the American boy is going to get out and do something himself.

After a year of soldiering a young man who lives at 110th Street now walks back and forth to Forty-second Street every day to business. Hiking has become a habit with him. Unless he walks five or six miles a day he doesn’t feel fit. This is the spirit which is likely to bring about a great revival of sports during the Spring and Summer. Golf and tennis are the sports which probably will command the greatest interest among amateurs. Championships have been restores and new events have been instituted.

“Recrudescence,” if you were wondering, means “a new outbreak after a period of abatement or inactivity,” according to Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

Sport Recrudescence on Heels of Army Training: Returning Soldiers, Often Physically Fit for First Time in Their Lives, Show Active Interest in Golf, Tennis, Baseball, and Other Exercise

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Every week, I post the most interesting articles from the New York Times Sunday Magazine from exactly 100 years ago, with a little bit of commentary or context. See the About Page for more info.

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